News

Should Member States Overrule EU on GMO Decisions?

12 November 2014

EU - Should member states be able to overrule the EU when considering the cultivation of genetically modified organisms (GMO) in their territory?

New rules allowing them to restrict or prohibit cultivation will be voted on by the public health committee on 11 November. To learn more about what's at stake, watch the EuroparlTV interview with report author Frédérique Ries.

Work on the proposal already started in July 2010. After the Council published its latest position at the end of July 2014, it is now again up to the Parliament to vote on the proposal. On Tuesday 28 October, the public health committee voted on a report with recommendations written by Ries, a Belgian member of the ALDE group.

Ries explained: "It´s a directive on giving states the option of banning the cultivation of GMOs. The Commission, which put forward this text, hasn´t talked about a directive that authorises cultivation."

Ms Ries said the report she wrote "is the reflection of many concerns of the committee," adding: "The criteria and motives such as land use, respect for biodiversity, pesticide resistance are much better articulated, much more precise than the Commission´s all too vague wording."

Once the report has been approved, it will be up to all MEPs to vote on the proposal during an upcoming plenary session.